Essential Albums of the '80s: Janet Jackson - Control (1986)

It must feel good if you’re an artist struggling to find an audience and finally discover the sound that fits your style and delivers what the public has been hungry for. That’s what Janet Jackson did with her third album, Control, which was wildly more successful than her hitless first two albums.

Although she was already famous for her television work (and for just being a Jackson), Control proved that Janet was an artist in her own right. The hard-edged dance pop sound was honed by Minneapolis-based production duo Jimmy Jam & Terry Lewis, cementing a musical relationship with Jackson that would last into the ‘00s, producing hit after hit.

What’s satisfying about Control is that as much as it delivered hit singles—five top 10s in the US—it also holds together well as an album, both musically and thematically. It’s a statement about independence, professionally, personally, even sexually.

The title track spells it all out with its spoken-word intro before breaking into the album’s signature high-octane dance pop. “Nasty,” my favorite track, finds Jackson bending gender stereotypes, treating men like playthings she can love or leave on her own terms. Its deep bass grind still feels fresh and fun. “What Have You Done For Me Lately,” finds Jackson on the verge of a breakup, but rather than a sob story about some guy dumping her, she’s the one laying out how’s it going to be if he wants her to stay.

As in your face as these songs are, “Let’s Wait Awhile” shows that you don’t have to give up control to be sensitive, with Jackson telling her beau she wants to forgo sex…for now. She later seals the deal on closing track “Funny How Times Flies (When You’re Having Fun),” introducing Jackson’s signature sexual coos that permeate many of her later albums, although at this early stage, it doesn't yet feel so tawdry. Elsewhere, the album stays aloft with the joyful dance pop of songs like “The Pleasure Principle,” “You Can Be Mine” and her first #1 hit “When I Think of You.” A true ‘80s gem.

Best: Nasty, When I Think of You, What Have You Done For Me Lately, Control, Let’s Wait Awhile

Further Listening: Janet Jackson’s Rhythm Nation 1814 (1989)

I already wrote about this album as part of my 1990 series, since its multiple hit singles (seven top 5 hits) were such an integral part of that year’s music landscape. But the album did come out in the twilight hours of the ‘80s, so it deserves mention here, since it’s even better than Control, with Jam & Lewis pushing Jackson further into groovy dance pop with a touch of new jack swing. After the inward-looking Control, Rhythm Nation’s theme looked outward at the problems of the world, but also found time for love, sex and hedonistic fun. Best: Rhythm Nation, Miss You Much, Love Will Never Do (Without You), Come Back to Me, Alright, Escapade, Black Cat, State of the World.

Essential Albums of the '80s: Madonna - True Blue (1986)

This was the first true album by Madonna that I owned, and in 1988 I listened to it pretty much nonstop, instantly falling for its bold productions like the dark ballad “Live to Tell” and the gutsy “Papa Don’t Preach”—both of which were “story” songs, although not necessarily personal stories from Madonna’s own life (that would come later on Like a Prayer).

As much as Like a Virgin was big leap from Madonna, True Blue was yet another big step forward for the singer, who opted for a more mature and broader sound here. Notably, she began preferring her lower vocal register, so she sounds quite a bit different (and better) on True Blue than on her previous albums. The sugar-coated pop sound of Like a Virgin is mostly abandoned for a more adult pop sound, particularly on the album’s first half. The instrumentation is richer too, with strings and electric guitar forming a muscular sound for “Papa Don’t Preach,” while thick layers of keyboard coat “Live to Tell” in a sort of beautiful gloom.

She employs a lighter touch on the album’s second half for the sprightly “Where the Party” and the retro sounds of “Jimmy Jimmy” and the title track. She also unveils her first Latin-influenced song, “La Isla Bonita,” which would be a running theme for some time (“Who’s that Girl,” “Spanish Eyes,” Evita, for example). All of these new sounds paid off: True Blue is Madonna's biggest-selling album internationally and her biggest hit-producing album, generating five top 5 hits in both the US and the UK, including three #1 hits in each country.

The album benefits greatly from the 2003 remastering, more so than Like a Virgin, which didn’t have as strong a production in the first place. The richness of the album’s sound really shines now. I would be hard-pressed to choose a favorite among Madonna’s first three albums, but this is definitely a strong contender. Best: Papa Don’t Preach, Live to Tell, Open Your Heart, True Blue, La Isla Bonita.

Further Listening: You Can Dance (1987)

You Can Dance was one of the first remix albums by a major pop artist (following Pet Shop Boys’ Disco), which helped usher in the format, which is still popular today (Radiohead and Britney both released remix albums this week). Although some might consider it a cash-in, I’ve read that Madonna was intimately involved in creating the album, as she was very protective of her sound. After the Who’s That Girl soundtrack, this was the second work I ever bought of Madonna’s. I remember opting for You Can Dance over True Blue at the record store because it had “Spotlight,” which was on the radio at the time. Curiously, there are four versions of this album. The vinyl LP contains the seven songs proper; the CD version adds dub versions of “Holiday,” “Into the Groove,” and “Where’s the Party”; and then the cassette version drops the “Where’s the Party” dub but instead has dub versions of “Spotlight” and “Over and Over”--one of those instances where the cassette has more songs than the CD. Additionally, there is a very rare version of the album that contains only single edits of seven songs—something I would love to get my hands on at some point. Also of note is that the songs are mixed together to form two continuous suites, a technique Madonna would use again on Confessions on the Dance Floor (2005).

Essential Albums of the '80s: Kylie Minogue - Kylie (1988), Risk Astley - Whenever You Need Somebody (1987)

Is there a more defining late ‘80s British dance pop sound than Stock/Aitken/Waterman? They were huge and their breezy tunes, kissed by rat-a-tat drum programming, staccato keyboards and studio-perfected voices from fresh-faced artists generated a plethora of hits. Kylie Minogue and Rick Astley were their poster children, particularly these debut albums.

Both albums had their signature hits—her “I Should Be So Lucky,” his “Never Gonna Give You Up”—plus quite a few other singles. Those two songs, which are essentially the same, begin each album, which both unfurl with similar dance pop after. They both down for some mid-tempo numbers but not really any ballads, save for Astley's terribly misguided remake of “When I Fall in Love.”

Much of Kylie’s songs have a laid-back feel, such as “Je Nais Sa Pas Pourquoi” and “It’s No Secret,” a minor US hit. It’s front-loaded with the better songs (and singles) and loses steam once you reach “I Miss You,” although I do like “Look My Way,” which bears more than a passing resemblance to The Whispers’ “Rock Steady.” The album concludes with perky “Love at First Sight,” which bears no resemblance to the vastly superior track of the same name from Minogue’s 2001 album, Fever.

Interestingly, Astley’s album was the bigger of the two in the US, where “Never Gonna Give You Up” and “Together Forever” were #1 hits. Minogue scored a top 10 hit with her remake of “The Loco-Motion,” but that was her only major American hit until “Can’t Get You Out of My Head” struck gold 13 years later (“I Should Be So Lucky,” despite its pop brilliance, couldn’t even reach the top 20). Globally speaking though, Minogue is by far the bigger artist, having used this album to launch a successful dance pop career that continues to today, whereas Astley seems a fine candidate for a “where are they now” special. Yet, it could have easily gone the other way, as his album is no less a guilty pop pleasure than hers. The aforementioned #1 hits, plus the title track and “It Would Take a Strong, Strong Man” are all worthwhile, semi-disposable pop that can get stuck in your head to this day (walking on the beach earlier today I couldn’t get “Together Forever” out of my head). His album tracks aren’t as strong as hers. “The Love Has Gone” has more of a mature, adult feel to it, but “Don’t Say Goodbye” could have been a boyband hit. Most of the other few tracks aren’t very distinct, particularly “You Move Me,” which has about the worst lyrics I’ve ever heard for a pop song.

Kylie best: I Should Be So Lucky, The Loco-Motion, Je Ne Sais Pas Pourquoi, Got to Be Certain, It’s No Secret.

Whenever You Need Somebody best: Never Gonna Give You Up, Together Forever, It Would Take a Strong Strong Man, Whenever You Need Somebody.

Essential Albums of the '80s: Huey Lewis & The News - Sports (1983) and Fore! (1986)

To be sure, Huey Lewis & The News were not my thing back in the '80s, nor can I say listening to their two big albums from the '80s have made a fan of me today. However, I found their music interesting if only because it so unlike any current pop music. They were purveyors of a sort of “macho” pop-rock sound. The kind of band that could play in a bar but also score top 40 hits. And score many they did--the group had 12 top 10 during the '80s, including three #1s, most of which were the singles from these two albums.

They broke out big with their third album, Sports, and continued that success with the following album Fore!, between which they scored a #1 hit with “The Power of Love,” which was prominently featured in the film Back to the Future. Between the two there were lots of hit singles: four US top 10 hits from Sports and five top 10s from Fore!, including two #1 hits, “Stuck with You” and “Jacob’s Ladder.”

Sports begins on a typically upbeat note with “The Heart of Rock and Roll,” the album’s third single. It’s guitar-keyboard-drum melody, while not exactly original, is quite inoffensive. “Heart and Soul,” the album’s first top 10 hit, is similar in tone and sound but has a better hook. “Bad Is Bad” aims for a more bluesy sound but misses before getting back on track with “I Want a New Drug,” which sounds suspiciously like Ray Parker Jr.’s “Ghostbusters”—enough so for Huey Lewis & the News to sue. “Walking on a Thin Line,” the album’s fifth single and only one to miss the top 10 has a pulsing bass line under its synths and guitar chords, as does the bracing “You Crack Me Up.” “Finally Found a Home” starts with good guitar and bass interplay but then dates itself once those signature keyboards start up. “If This Is It,” which was the album’s fourth consecutive top 10 hit, has warm, retro flavor.

Unsurprisingly, Fore! is pretty similar to Sports. “Jacob’s Ladder” strikes a confident pose with its amped guitars and plodding drums. “Stuck with You” has a little more heart, even if its lyrics about a couple considering divorce but deciding it’s not worth it are ridiculous. “Whole Lotta Lovin’” has a ‘50s melody and a bit of doo-wop (an obvious nod to Back to the Future). “Doing It All for My Baby” tries to be sincere but comes off sappy. Yet maybe that’s okay for a band who’d put out a song called “Hip to Be Square” as a single (and see it reach #3). The song sounds a lot like “Power of Love.” “I Know What I Like” has a nice groove with a warm melody.

Some ‘80s music ages well and, even it sounds dated, is still quite fun, especially that which sounds like the ‘80s-leaning sounds that are so popular these days. This sound is not one of those, so unless you were a Huey Lewis fan back in the day (which I wasn’t), this doesn’t have much to offer, other than a chance to scratch your head and wonder why this was such a big deal 25 years ago.

Sports Best: Heart and Soul, I Want a New Drug, This Is It
Fore! Best: Jacob’s Ladder, Hip to Be Square, I Know What I Like

Essential Albums of the '80s: Michael Jackson - Bad (1987)

Michael Jackson’s 1982 album Thriller is hands-down the biggest pop album of all time. How do you follow that? You can’t, even if you’re a studio perfectionist like Jackson it’s going to fall short. But nonetheless, Bad doesn’t live up to its name, even if it doesn't live up to Thriller. In fact, it can claim a chart feat Thriller cant, which, until this week, was that it was the sole album ever released that scored five Billboard Hot 100 #1 hits. The dance pop on Bad has a harder edge than Thriller and if those songs fall short, it’s only by a hair. The pulsing keyboards of the title track, the rolling melody of “The Way You Make Me Feel” and the dark sheen of “Smooth Criminal” make those songs almost in league with “Thriller” or “Wanna Be Startin’ Somethin.’” And the ballads are actually better than those on Thriller, particularly the album’s first single and Siedah Garrett duet, “I Just Can’t Stop Loving You,” and the classic “Man in the Mirror,” which was the album’s biggest hit and the best of Jackson’s “change the world” songs. However, the obligatory rocker track, the paranoid “Dirty Diana,” doesn’t come close to bliss of “Beat It” (it’s amazing it was the album’s fifth #1 hit). The album hits its lowest points on the weird racing car-themed “Speed Demon” and, surprisingly, the Stevie Wonder duet “Just Good Friends.” In Britain, those are the only two tracks that weren’t released as singles. In addition to the seven tracks released in the US, Brits also got bonus track “Leave Me Alone” and breezy “Liberian Girl,” whose video featured, well, everybody. Best: Man in the Mirror, Bad, The Way You Make Me Feel, I Just Can’t Stop Loving You, Smooth Criminal.

Essential Albums of the '80s: Whitney Houston - Whitney (1987)

This was one of the first albums I ever owned, so my absolute love for this album might have more to do with nostalgia than its actual quality, although I think it would be hard to deny this is a great pop album, even if it isn’t quite as consistent as Whitney Houston’s self-titled1985 debut. Pure pop pleasure “I Wanna Dance with Somebody (Who Loves Me)” gets things rolling on really strong note. The song is pop perfection and my favorite track by Houston. From there on, the album follows a pretty predictable path, alternating almost track-by-track between big adult-leaning love ballads and frothier dance pop confections. Although the ballads may have shined more on her debut, there’s a definite push to grow her younger audience here with the upbeat songs, which are generally the better tracks. “So Emotional” in particular is a highlight, and I also quite like “Love Will Save the Day” and even find the ridiculous “Love Is a Contact Sport” to be a guilty pleasure. Two of the album’s ballads were US #1s, the better of which is “Didn’t We Almost Have It All,” which was produced by Michael Masser, who produced several hits from Houston’s debut. The other, “Where Do Broken Hearts Go,” was produced by Narada Michael Warren, who produced most of the album. Among the album’s non-singles that dominate its second half, I’m particularly fond of the laid-back feel of “For the Love of You.”

Best: I Wanna Dance with Somebody (Who Loves Me), So Emotional, Didn’t We Almost Have It All, Just the Lonely Talking Again, Where Do Broken Hearts Go, Love Will Save the Day.

Essential Albums of the '80s: Paul Simon - Graceland (1986)

Graceland is probably Paul Simon’s most acclaimed work. His seventh studio album, it won the 1986 Grammy Award for Album of the Year and its title track won Record of the Year the following year. The album’s sound draws on a rich mix of instrumentation, most notably its use of South African musicians, but there are other sounds too like the accordion of “The Boy in the Bubble,” which begins the album on a buoyant, festive note. It’s easy to hear how groups like Vampire Weekend were inspired by the sound of songs like “Graceland,” ostensibly about a road trip to Memphis, but also about the loss of love, perhaps referencing the recent dissolution of Simon’s marriage with Carrie Fisher. “I Know What I Know” skewers Hollywood elitism (“Don’t I know you from that cinematographer’s party?”) contrasted with the far-from-Hollywood sound of South African musicians General M.D. Shiranda and The Gaza Sisters. “Gumboots” strikes me as a Woody Allen-esque moment, talking about sharing a taxi downtown with a friend having a breakdown. “Diamonds on the Soles of Her Shoes” has an a cappella beginning that transitions to a laid-back vibe. “You Can Call Me Al” is the most recognizable of the album’s songs and its most mainstream sound. It’s rich horn-heavy production contrasts with the a cappella arrangement of the following track, “Homeless,” featuring African singers Ladysmith Black Mambazo. “Crazy Love, Vol. 2” is another bright, pop-oriented highlight.

Best: Graceland, You Can Call Me Al, I Know What I Know, The Boy in the Bubble, Crazy Love Vol 2.

Essential Albums of the '80s: Girl Groups

It was nearly impossible to look at a pop chart in the '90s and not see a girl pop group. From Wilson Phillips to Destiny's Child (and En Vogue, TLC, Spice Girls and All Saints in between), it was the decade where a trio or foursome of ladies was a ticket to chart gold. In the '00s, the concept faded in the US, although it remained big in the UK, thanks to Atomic Kitten, Sugababes, Girls Aloud and The Saturdays.

Although girl groups weren't as big in the '80s, there are a few great examples. Now, I'm not talking about girl bands--the territory of acts like The Bangles and The Go-Gos are a whole separate issue. These acts are singers only, like most of the acts I named above. Two albums, in particular, rise up as great examples of dance pop from both the decade's early post-disco era and its later, higher-paced sound that helped set the template for early '90s dance pop.

The Pointer Sisters - Break Out (1983)
The Pointer Sisters had quite a few hits in the '70s, but their biggest success came with the release of this album. Six tracks were released as singles, four of which reached the top 10 in the US. "Jump (for My Love)" was the album's biggest single, hitting #3 in 1984. The bubbly, synthesizer-heavy song was memorably used in the 2003 film Love Actually, which coincided with a remake by British girl group Girls Aloud. "Automatic" hit #2 in the UK and #5 in the US. It's a little more subdued and as such, I don't think it's quite as fun. I'm more a fan of "I'm So Excited," a song they brought forward to Break Out from their previous album. Although it had been a single and hit #30 earlier, it was re-released and it did even better, hitting #9 on the Hot 100. The song blends obviously synthetic and more natural keyboard sounds, which form the song's insistent melody. "Neutron Dance" was another top 10 hit, although it sounds the most dated of the album's big singles. Funky "Dance Electric" is also worth a spin, Best: I'm So Excited, Jump (for My Love), Dance Electric.

Exposé - Exposure (1987)
Miami-based Exposé got their start with this high-energy outing, which, like the Pointer Sisters' album, generated four top 10 hits. The album is mostly dance pop, drawing also from the Latin "freestyle" sound that was big at the time. "Come Go with Me," "Point of No Return" and "Let Me Be The One" are all similar and all similarly fun uptempo pop songs. "Point of No Return" is particularly good with its stabbing synthesized bass notes. Lots of other songs on the album fall in this vein. The biggest departure though is "Seasons Change," a saxophone-backed pop ballad which, when released as the album's fourth and final single, became the group's biggest hit when it topped the Billboard Hot 100. Best: Seasons Change, Point of No Return, Come Go with Me.

Essential Albums of the '80s: Cyndi Lauper - She's So Unusual (1983)

It's common that when one major female pop artist appears on the scene, you actually get two that are similar enough to draw instant comparisons. Debbie Gibson and Tiffany. Britney Spears and Christina Aguilera. Avril Lavigne and Kelly Clarkson. Lady Gaga and Ke$ha. Etc. Sometimes it's the one you don't expect that becomes the bigger star.

That was certainly the case in 1984, which saw the emergence of Cyndi Lauper and Madonna. Both worked outrageous looks over cutting edge pop--Madonna treading more in dance pop waters while Lauper had a broader sound, encompassing dance pop, synth pop, even rock. And initially, Lauper was the biggest star. Madonna struggled to find a top 10 hit, which finally came with "Borderline" and then her biggest hit at that point, #4 single "Lucky Star." Although Lauper took awhile to catch on too, when she did, she was even bigger, scoring four top 5 singles from She's So Unusual, including #1 hit "Time After Time" and #2 "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun"--both of which are easily '80s classics.

Of course, we all know that Madonna became the much, much bigger star, but in 1984, that outcome wasn't so obvious. In fact, I remember commentators at the time discussing how clearly Lauper would go on to bigger fame, since she the more creative of the two, and that Madonna lacked sufficient talent to have much staying power.

If She's So Unusual was all you had to go on, this wasn't such a bad assumption. The album was a massive pop success, jumping from the buoyant pop of "Girl Just Wanna Have Fun" to the goofy/dirty pop of "She Bop," to the synth-rock vibe of "Money Changes Everything." Lauper didn't have the best voice--it can be quite grating--but she had a lot of style, convincingly fitting into all of these styles. With her bright clothes and even brighter red hair, you'd think she couldn't nail a convincing ballad, but "Time After Time" was the album's biggest hit, and it remains a remarkable '80s pop ballad. Less impressive, but still enjoyable, is the album's other hit ballad, "All Through the Night." The production is very of the moment, but the songs themselves have proven to have staying power, especially "Time After Time," which is always being remade.

Lauper's follow-up, True Colors, gave her another #1 hit in the title track and a top 5 single, "Change of Heart," but the sales were a significant drop off, and then by the time she put out her third album in 1989 (which did yield the impressive single "I Drove All Night"), pop music had moved on.

Best: Time After Time, Girls Just Wanna Have Fun, She Bop, All Through the Night

Essential Albums of the '80s: Tracy Chapman - Tracy Chapman (1988)

In 1988, were people really talking about a revolution? Reagan was enjoying the last year of his popular presidency, the cold war was still on, the Berlin Wall was still up and AIDS was a scary thing few people understood (and many many fewer people had than today). I suppose revolution was just around the corner, and while Miss Chapman was already talking about it, I guess the rest of us weren't but should've been (hey, my excuse is that I was only 11). On her compelling debut, she sings about that and a lot of other things. It's cornerstone is still "Fast Car," Chapman's biggest early-career hit that's an African-American woman's answer to Bruce Springsteen, riding similar themes of working class angst, romance and escape. It's a moving song that endures today (it hit #4 in Britain just a few weeks ago, enjoying a surprising revival). Almost is good is "Baby Can I Hold You," which Boyzone would turn into a hit 9 years later.

On "Across the Lines," the album's lush acoustic arrangement might mask the fact that the song is about racial tension if you're not listening carefully. There's no pretty arrangement to mask the bitter sadness of "Behind the Wall," a powerful a cappella moment about a woman who can hear the screaming of a neighbor woman being beaten by her husband. Other highlights include the warm, African rhythms of "Mountains O' Things" and the burning guitar rock of "For My Lover."

Best: Fast Car, Talkin' Bout a Revolution, Behind the Wall, Baby Can I Hold You, For My Lover

Essential Albums of the '80s: The Police - Synchronicity (1983)

"Every Breath You Take" is The Police's most well-known hit and widely misunderstood as a love song when it's really about obsession, jealousy and surveillance (i.e. stalking). It's also not very representative of its parent album, which is much more experimental and new wave-oriented than that pop tune would suggest. "Synchronicity I" opens the album with an insistent keyboard refrain reminiscent of what might start an evening newscast, followed by the more tribal sounding "Walking in Your Footsteps," both of which have a repetitious character that reminds me of the Talking Heads album I covered a few months ago. By the time you get to manic, off-kilter "Mother" and "Miss Gradenko," you know you're in fairly experimental territory.

But then on the second half of the album, it shifts towards more conventional pop territory. "Synchronicity II" has a strong guitar melody, making it the most assertive of the album's hit singles. "King of Pain" and "Wrapped Around Your Finger" are softer, with the former scored prominently at first with piano and then synths, with the latter starting quietly, almost ominously as it builds toward its bolder chorus. "Every Breath You Take" requires little explanation--it is a timeless, classic pop record, even if it is erroneously appropriated for wedding reception music (Dido's "Don't Leave Home" would later suffer the same fate). The moody, jazzy tracks "Tea in the Sahara" and "Murder By Numbers" shift the album away from its pop core for the closing.

An interesting and exciting album, that I'm sure for fans was a real disappointment to have never been followed up, since it was the band's final album.

Best: Every Breath You Take, Synchronicity II, Wrapped Around Your Finger, Synchronicity I

Essential Albums of the '80s: Bobby Brown - Don't Be Cruel (1988)

New Jack Swing was a style of pop music that came to prominence in the late '80s thanks to producer Teddy Riley, as well as Babyface, who with L.A. Reid produced this album. The sound combined elements of pop, R&B and hip-hop--not too dissimilar to what's been popular in recent years. While Keith Sweat's 1987 hit "I Want Her" was the first major hit to use the sound, Bobby Brown's second album, Don't Be Cruel, became the sound's flagship when it became the best-selling album of 1989, generating five top 10 hits. The album's singles are all front-loaded and generally the album's best moments, with the upbeat tracks like #1 single "My Prerogative" and bouncy "Every Little Step" aging better than the treacly ballads "Roni" and "Rock Wit'Cha." As was the common practice back then, most of the album's later singles were slightly remixed when released, which means "Every Little Step" and "Roni," in particular, don't sound as fresh as you might remember. However, they are better than the album's second half, which can be disregarded.

Brown would go on to marry Whitney Houston, put out another semi-successful album, 1992's Bobby, which featured a couple of big hits ("Humpin' Around" and "Good Enough"), and then slowly decline amid tabloid stories of his tumultuous relationship with Houston and an ill-conceived reality TV show.

Best: My Prerogative, Every Little Step, Don't Be Cruel, Roni

Essential Albums of the '80s: Madonna - Like a Virgin (1984)

All of Madonna's '80s output is well regarded, but Like a Virgin gets the least amount of love among the four albums. Madonna has been riding a retro popularity wave for being most like the '80s sound that's currently en vogue, Like a Prayer is generally regarded as one of her best albums of any era and True Blue is considered better by comparison. But Like a Virgin should not be disregarded, for I find it offers up a lot of charm.

It certainly has a special place in my heart and historically, it's probably Madonna's most important album, since it's the one that made her a superstar. Madonna was a hit, but not a megahit, producing a couple of top 10 hits. That's on par with a launch of the likes of Pink in 2000 or Rihanna in 2005, but not a star-making turn on par with what Whitney Houston, Mariah Carey, Britney Spears, Christina Aguilera, Beyonce or Lady Gaga achieved with their debuts. That success came with Like a Virgin, which shifted ever so slightly away from the pure dance pop territory of Madonna toward a more mainstream sound.

It's also the first album where Madonna showed she had some sass, dressing up as an over-sexualized bride on the album's cover, a iconic image captured by Steven Meisel (who would later shoot her 1992 controversial coffee table book, Sex). The title track may have "virgin" in its title, but it's got sex on its mind with Madonna delivering her most kittenish vocal over the memorable hook. It was her first US #1, spending 6 weeks in the top spot. Almost as memorable was the album's second single, "Material Girl," a satirical take on the '80s obsession with equating money and love that, for better or worse, gave the singer a long-lasting nickname.

It's two lesser singles are decent too. Although I used to find the name-dropping fashion-focused "Dress You Up" to be more appealing, these days I'm more into "Angel," which sounds most stuck-in-time of any of this album's singles. It couldn't have come from any other time other than 1984 and I love it for that. Madonna co-wrote the song with Stephen Bray, who would go on to collaborate with her on True Blue, Who's That Girl Soundtrack and Like a Prayer. Among the album cuts, the two closing numbers, "Stay" and "Pretender" are better than the slower songs. I used to really be into "Over and Over," but after 25 years, I'm a little tired of it.

Like a Virgin is Madonna's best-selling album in the US. It was certified diamond for 10 million copies shipped, a feat equaled only by her greatest hits set, The Immaculate Collection. Sure, the Nile Rodgers production is really dated, but for it's time, it was great pop music. A true '80s classic.

Best: Like a Virgin, Material Girl, Angel, Dress You Up, Stay

Essential Albums of the '80s: Enya - Watermark (1988)

Last week I profiled the '80s biggest heavy metal album. This week I take the most significant about-face possible and look at the decade's most popular new age album.

Enya's Watermark may not have set the pop charts on fire, but pretty much everyone seems to have one of her albums lying around someplace. Many people consider it to be merely inoffensive, which isn't fair really, since that downplays how quite lovely it is. Versatile too. I'm sure millions of people have enjoyed as the soundtrack to dinner, evening reading, massage and sex.

To say it's a "quiet" album is to skip over the growing intensity of "Carsum Perficio." To say it all sounds the same is to miss how much that song contrasts with the gentle synth-based track "On Your Shore" that follows. The albums most pop-leaning track, "Orinoco Flow," was a major international hit for the star, and while it's great, it's one of many highlights here. I'm particularly taken by the sensual instrumental title track.

Although Enya is often referred to as a new age artist, the Irish singer's sound is really a clever hybrid of new age, pop, electronic, and world music. What really sets her apart though is her signature multi-tracked vocals, as if we're listening to not one Gaelic chanteuse but an army of them. Thus her voice becomes an instrument on par with any other sound she wants to throw in the mix. Even the booming drums on "Storms in Africa" are no match for her.

Watermark put Enya on the map and she stuck around for quite some time, releasing similar albums of lushly orchestrated vocal-electronic music. Most significantly, her 2001 single, "Only Time," became a major hit after its emotional message resonated with the public following 9/11.

Best: Orinoco Flow (Sail Away), Watermark, Storms in Africa, Carsum Perficio

Essential Albums of the '80s: AC/DC - Back in Black (1980)

Hair bands dominated the hard rock scene in the '80s ranging from the more serious (Guns N Roses, Motley Crue, Bon Jovi) to the less so (Poison), but in the early '80s AC/DC ruled the metal scene with this release, their sixth album released globally.

Ominous chimes open the album during "Hells Bells," which later segues into "Shoot to Thrill," a more light-hearted and upbeat track. Despite being "heavy" metal, what I'm struck by most about this album is that the band doesn't shy away from quiet moments, even within songs that can rev up the volume, making for the kind of musical "peaks and valleys" that is so rare in popular music today. Kind of refreshing actually. I've read that, unlike most heavy metal bands, they weren't as big of posers, although they still partied hard, a fact celebrated on Back to Black. Track 8, titled "Have a Drink on Me" seems quite tasteless when you consider that this album followed the band's previous lead singer's death by alcohol poisoning.

They can get pretty taudry too. "Let Me Put My Love Into You" is about exactly what you'd expect and sails along on a sea of confident guitar licks. One night stands get one of their best odes ever in "You Shook Me All Night Long," perhaps the most classic track the band ever recorded.

Worldwide, Back in Black is the second best-selling album of all time behind Michael Jackson's Thriller. In the US--where the album is 22 times platinum--it's fifth, but that still puts it just behind Thriller as the second biggest album of the decade. The album was produced by Mutt Lange, who in addition to producing the best-selling album of all time in the US by a band also produced the best-selling album of all time by a woman, his (now former) wife Shania Twain's third album, Come on Over.

Best: You Shook Me All Night Long, Shoot to Thrill, Let Me Put My Love Into You, Back in Black

Essential Albums of the '80s: Depeche Mode - Music for the Masses (1987)

Violator (1990) is Depeche Mode's most successful and highly regarded album, but Music for the Masses, released just prior to that landmark set, is quite worthy too. Musically, it's pretty similar, finding Depeche Mode exploring the dark synth-pop sound they are best known for. The beginning of the album is particularly strong. Charging synth-pop opener "Never Let Me Down Again" is among the best singles the band ever produced, second only to "Enjoy the Silence." It's followed by the mellower, moodier "The Things You Said," which sounds like the kind of music the people in Blade Runner would listen to. "Strangelove" has a sharper beat, an obvious forerunner to "Personal Jesus." "Little 15" isn't an obvious highlight, but I like how it's foreboding melody drives to a richer instrumental climax during the bridge. Some of the songs in the second half are kind of strange, like "I Want You Now," which featuring wheezy, heavy breathing. Closing instrumental "Pimpf" is bold and dark, a bit over the top. But don't miss "Nothing," a driving synth-pop tune that probably could have been a single had they needed another one. Music for the Masses didn't generate any major hits, but as a solid entry in the DM catalog, it really should have.

Best: Never Let Me Down Again, The Things You Said, Strangelove, Nothing

Essential Albums of the '80s: John Lennon & Yoko Ono - Double Fantasy (1980)

Double Fantasy was released November 17, 1980, just 3 weeks before John Lennon was murdered. Although some initial reviews regarded the album as rather self-indulgent, as Lennon's final musical statement, it was critic-proof, becoming a major hit album and winner of the Grammy Award for Album of the Year.

As its title suggests, Double Fantasy is a double album of sorts, an apparent collaboration between husband and wife, although they never perform together on any song--half the songs are written and performed by him and the other half by her, with the tracks generally alternating between them. Thus, they form a sort of "call and response," most evident on Lennon's "I'm Losing You" followed by Ono's "I'm Moving On," as well as "Beautiful Boy" (Lennon) and "Beautiful Boys" (Ono).

Although their intention was to showcase their happy marriage, the result really shows what an amazing pop talent Lennon was (and Ono was not). His knack for pop songcraft shines on #1 hits like "(Just Like) Starting Over" with its bright '50s bounce, and "Woman," a layered tune that's a rather sweet love song ("woman, I know you understand the little child inside your man"). Although clearly sentimental, even his "Beautiful Boy (Darling Boy)" comes off not as sappy but as sweet and even a little sad when you consider it means he never got to see his son grow up.

In contrast, Ono's more avant garde style refuse to be turned into good pop music, and many of her songs come across as off-kilter filler. "Kiss Kiss" features her weird babble and finishes with her reaching orgasm. While his "Beautiful Boy" is lovely and melodic, her "Beautiful Boys" sounds kind of creepy (and what mother muses that her son will feel empty at age 40?). Her only entry that I kind of like is "Give Me Something," which, while a bit brash for this album, has a good bass beat with layered acoustic and synth melodies.

Best: (Just Like) Starting Over, Woman, Beautiful Boy (Darling Boy), Watching the Wheels, Give Me Something

Essential Albums of the '80s: Barbra Streisand - Guilty (1980)

The Bee Gee's Barry Gibb is so essential to the sound of Barbra Streisand's Guilty that he earned himself a spot on the album's cover. Even though the work itself is solely credited to Streisand, this really is a collaboration, and the Bee Gee's signature pop sound is unmistakable throughout. Dramatic "Woman in Love" was a #1 hit, while "Guilty" and "What Kind of Fool" both reached the top 10. "Guilty," a duet with Gibb, is a particularly nice slice of breezily romantic 1980s pop. It won the Grammy Award for Best Pop Vocal Performance by a Duo/Group. A lot of the music here is in that vein--laid back, groovy love songs. Things get a little funkier on "Promises," and "Life Story" is a bold mix of guitar, brass and synths. But mostly it's the love ballads with their soaring strings that make this album memorable, like "What Kind of Fool," another Gibb duet, and "The Love Inside," which threatens to climb the raptors but actually manages to reign itself in as a nicely understated love song. The team-up with Gibb proved a major success for Streisand, making Guilty her most successful album.

Best: Guilty, Woman in Love, What Kind of Fool

Essential Albums of the 80s: Guns N' Roses - Appetite for Destruction

A lot of '80s rock music sounds relatively tame to my post-grunge ears. Appetite for Destruction not so much. Guns N' Roses blustery 1987 debut was a sharp shot of adrenaline for hard rockers softened by too much makeup and too many synthesizers. "It's So Easy" has guitar and bass interplay that reminds me of a lot of '90s music. It was their first single, although not a hit. "Welcome to the Jungle," the band's second single was their breakthrough, signaling their shameless, high-energy style. "Nightrain," has a musical guitar melody courtesy of the band's guitarist Slash--one of few rock musicians that's not a singer to become a mainstream name himself. The band's other big name, its lead singer Axl Rose, sings with raspy mania, which he barely reigns in, even on the group's #1 hit, the more genteel love song, "Sweet Child O' Mine," or its radio-friendly follow-up hit "Paradise City." As explosive as this debut was, the band's subsequent career was underwhelming. After the epic two-part punch of 1991's Use Your Illusion albums, the band released a covers album and then didn't produce another album for 15 years, 2008's Chinese Democracy.

Best: Sweet Child O' Mine, Paradise City, It's So Easy, Welcome to the Jungle

Essential Albums of the 80s: Bruce Springsteen - Born in the USA (1984)

"The time are tough now, just getting tougher" begins Springsteen on "Cover Me," the second track of Born in the USA. It sounds like a statement more apt for the '10s than the '80s which, after all, was the decade of excess. But despite the public's interest in Wall Street portfolios and shows like Dynasty, Springsteen kept the fire burning for the everyday working man, making the themes of class struggle his bread and butter. Compared to his previous work, Born in the USA takes a lighter approach musically even as it adheres to his typically gritty themes. Thus you get "Born in the USA," a defiant-sounding slice of synth-scored pop rock that has been (often inappropriately) appropriated by political campaigns that hear the song's refrain and think "patriotism" while missing its bitter message about the illusion of the American dream.

While social commentary creeps through many of its songs, so does the pursuit of romance, through which he finds success on "Cover Me," but ends up in the slammer at the end of the lively "Working on the Highway." Springsteen infuses a lot of sex appeal in his songs too, whether its the edgy romanticism of downbeat "I'm on Fire" or the propulsive vitality of "Dancing the Dark," the song that became the singer's biggest hit. Romance of a different sort combines with social commentary on "My Hometown," which chronicles the plight of a small town in decline while balancing the economic desire to leave with the nostalgic desire to stay.

I wouldn't generally consider myself a big Springsteen fan, although I am somewhat familiar with his more recent albums. That said, I really like Born in the USA, and its whetted my appetite to hear more of his earlier work. I appreciate that it managed to appeal both to the masses and the music critics--something few albums seem to do these days. That it scored a very impressive seven top 10 hits (a feat managed by only two other albums ever), makes it all the more notable, especially since he'd had only one top 10 hit prior.

Best: Dancing in the Dark, Born in the USA, I'm on Fire, Cover Me, Glory Days, My Hometown